The 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season heads to Darlington Raceway, and the Cook Out 400 prize money is out.

The seventh event of the season is expected to be exciting, as the Next Gen car will run for the ninth time at the Darlington Raceway.

All drivers taking the field for the main event will be racing to win 210.4 miles on Sunday (March 29) on the 0.526-mile paperclip-shaped oval track.

Along with the win, there will be monetary rewards for the Cook Out 400 winner. In 2026, the 400-laps race boasts a prize pool of $11,233,037.

Live action of the Martinsville event can be enjoyed live on FS1, FOX One, Peacock, and MRN at 3:30 pm ET.

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What is the Cook Out 400 prize money for 2026?

The 36 drivers, including chartered and one non-chartered driver, participating in the Cup Series will compete for monetary incentives this weekend in Ridgeway, Virginia.

FOX Sports motorsports reporter Bob Pockrass revealed the total prize pool that will be up for grabs this weekend at Martinsville:

“Purses for Martinsville weekend including all payouts for all positions, charter payouts, contingency awards, etc.: Cup: : $11,233,037 O’Reilly: $1,651,939”

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Cook Out 400 Prize Money Breakdown: How much will the winner make at the Darlington?

According to Pockrass, the 2026 Martinsville spring winner is likely to receive between eight and 10 percent of the total purse.

As per this assumption, the winner of this year’s Cook Out 400 prize money will likely get eight to 10 percent of the $11,233,037, which means a check of around $898,642.96 and $1,123,303.70.

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Explore the 2026 Cook Out 400 prize money payout per position

After deducting the winner’s amount from the total Cook Out 400 prize money, the remaining purse will be divided among the 36 charter teams according to their finishing positions in the race, charter status, etc.

With the advent of the charter system in NASCAR, individual payouts per finishing position are no longer published.

NASCAR Cup Series action started with practice and qualifying on Saturday (March 28), followed by the main event on Sunday evening.

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List of former NASCAR Martinsville Speedway champions

1. 1950 – Curtis Turner
2. 1951 – Curtis Turner
3. 1952 – Dick Rathmann
4. 1953 – Lee Petty
5. 1954 – Jim Paschal
6. 1955 – Tim Flock
7. 1956 – Buck Baker
8. 1957 – Buck Baker
9. 1958 – Bob Welborn
10. 1959 – Lee Petty
11. 1960 – Richard Petty
12. 1961* – Fred Lorenzen
13. 1962 – Richard Petty
14. 1963 – Richard Petty
15. 1964 – Fred Lorenzen
16. 1965 – Fred Lorenzen
17. 1966 – Jim Paschal
18. 1967 – Richard Petty
19. 1968 – Cale Yarborough
20. 1969 – Richard Petty
21. 1970 – Bobby Isaac
22. 1971 – Richard Petty
23. 1972 – Richard Petty
24. 1973 – David Pearson
25. 1974 – Cale Yarborough
26. 1975 – Richard Petty
27. 1976 – Darrell Waltrip
28. 1977 – Cale Yarborough
29. 1978 – Darrell Waltrip
30. 1979 – Richard Petty
31. 1980 – Darrell Waltrip
32. 1981 – Morgan Shepherd
33. 1982 – Harry Gant
34. 1983 – Darrell Waltrip
35. 1984 – Geoff Bodine
36. 1985 – Harry Gant
37. 1986 – Ricky Rudd
38. 1987 – Dale Earnhardt
39. 1988 – Dale Earnhardt
40. 1989 – Darrell Waltrip
41. 1990 – Geoff Bodine
42. 1991 – Dale Earnhardt
43. 1992 – Mark Martin
44. 1993 – Rusty Wallace
45. 1994 – Rusty Wallace
46. 1995 – Rusty Wallace
47. 1996 – Rusty Wallace
48. 1997 – Jeff Gordon
49. 1998 – Bobby Hamilton
50. 1999 – John Andretti
51. 2000 – Mark Martin
52. 2001 – Dale Jarrett
53. 2002 – Bobby Labonte
54. 2003 – Jeff Gordon
55. 2004 – Rusty Wallace
56. 2005 – Jeff Gordon
57. 2006 – Tony Stewart
58. 2007 – Jimmie Johnson
59. 2008 – Denny Hamlin
60. 2009 – Jimmie Johnson
61. 2010 – Denny Hamlin
62. 2011 – Kevin Harvick
63. 2012 – Ryan Newman
64. 2013 – Jimmie Johnson
65. 2014 – Kurt Busch
66. 2015 – Denny Hamlin
67. 2016 – Kyle Busch
68. 2017 – Brad Keselowski
69. 2018 – Clint Bowyer
70. 2019 – Brad Keselowski
71. 2020 – Martin Truex Jr.
72. 2021 – Martin Truex Jr.
73. 2022* – William Byron
74. 2023 – Kyle Larson
75. 2024 – William Byron
76. 2025 – Denny Hamlin